Telecommunications cables are known that comprise a series of optical fibers disposed in a protective sheath. In order to protect optical fibers against micro-bending which generally gives rise to a loss of optical fiber transmission properties, particularly in multimode fibers, it is known, in particular from Document EP-A-321,788, to provide optical fiber cables with a carrier member, generally a reinforcing component surrounded by a series of tubes or by a grooved cylindrical rod. The optical fibers are disposed loosely in the tubes or in the grooves of the cylindrical rod so that the optical fibers are subjected to practically no stress even when the cable is subjected to significant traction or to changes in temperature. The decoupling between the load-carrying structure of the cable and the optical fibers also provides resistance to shock and to crushing.
However, cables of this type are expensive and they are bulky compared with the number of optical fibers that they contain. These drawbacks are incompatible with the conditions in which optical fibers, and in particular monomode optical fibers, are used in local networks where it is desirable to have a very high connection density at low cost with respect both to purchasing and to laying optical fiber cables.